. . . . is total bullshit. and more and more shows are being sold this wayto prevent ticket scalping and control the number of people getting in to shows

BUT

it makes it impossible to purchase tickets for others or transfer your ticket to another person if you are not able to go for whatever reason

I've always preferred buying physical tickets directly at the box office toavoid paying extra fees and handling charges.tickets went on sale for Jane's Addiction at Metro this last saturday and the server crashed

I usually buy my tickets online but I haven't encountered an online or will call only show over here in PA yet. Maybe it's a venue by venue thing, or a state statute in your location to crack down on the scalping. Scalping is legal here with certain parameters, you have to be a certain distance from the venue and you can't get caught selling a certain amount over the ticket price. Sorry I don't know the exacts but I'm not in the scalping biz lol.

this is a link to the Consumer Reports version of the recent Ticketmaster settlementI know this news is a couple days old but this one explains the rebate a little bit betterI was not aware that the rebate would be applied to FUTURE ticket purchases

As part of its settlement of a class-action lawsuit that was filed eight years ago, Ticketmaster will make credits available to customers who bought tickets in the last 12 years. The lawsuit alleged that Ticketmaster's order-processing fees and UPS expedited delivery prices were both excessive and deceptive.

If you purchased tickets through Ticketmaster between October 21,1999, and October 19, 2011, you are eligible to participate in the settlement: A credit of $1.50 can be applied on 17 future Ticketmaster transactions and a $5 credit will be issued if you paid extra for expedited shipping through UPS, also applicable to 17 future transactions. Credit redemption comes with an expiration date (you have to use them within four years), and credits cannot be applied to tickets bought for events at venues owned or operated by AEG, a competitor of Ticketmaster's parent company, Live Nation.

Ticketmaster has set up a website where you can enter the e-mail addresses you originally used to buy tickets and get more information about details of the settlement.

A Ticketmaster spokesperson told CNNMoney that the company believes that the settlement is "fair, reasonable and adequate as a compromise of highly disputed claims." In a statement, Ticketmaster also disputed that its descriptions of fees associated with the purchase of tickets were misleading.

The California court has set a hearing for final approval of the settlement for May 29, 2012.

According to the New York Times, Ticketmaster settled another class-action lawsuit in October, for $16.5 million. That suit began when two ticket buyers sued the company over the sale of tickets for a pair of Bruce Springsteen concerts in 2009.

this is a link to the Consumer Reports version of the recent Ticketmaster settlementI know this news is a couple days old but this one explains the rebate a little bit betterI was not aware that the rebate would be applied to FUTURE ticket purchases

As part of its settlement of a class-action lawsuit that was filed eight years ago, Ticketmaster will make credits available to customers who bought tickets in the last 12 years. The lawsuit alleged that Ticketmaster's order-processing fees and UPS expedited delivery prices were both excessive and deceptive.

If you purchased tickets through Ticketmaster between October 21,1999, and October 19, 2011, you are eligible to participate in the settlement: A credit of $1.50 can be applied on 17 future Ticketmaster transactions and a $5 credit will be issued if you paid extra for expedited shipping through UPS, also applicable to 17 future transactions. Credit redemption comes with an expiration date (you have to use them within four years), and credits cannot be applied to tickets bought for events at venues owned or operated by AEG, a competitor of Ticketmaster's parent company, Live Nation.

Ticketmaster has set up a website where you can enter the e-mail addresses you originally used to buy tickets and get more information about details of the settlement.

A Ticketmaster spokesperson told CNNMoney that the company believes that the settlement is "fair, reasonable and adequate as a compromise of highly disputed claims." In a statement, Ticketmaster also disputed that its descriptions of fees associated with the purchase of tickets were misleading.

The California court has set a hearing for final approval of the settlement for May 29, 2012.

According to the New York Times, Ticketmaster settled another class-action lawsuit in October, for $16.5 million. That suit began when two ticket buyers sued the company over the sale of tickets for a pair of Bruce Springsteen concerts in 2009.